A ground-breaking project has won two national environmental awards.

Organised by Skipton ’s two Rotary clubs, Butterfly Gardens not only took top honours in the schools category but was also named as the overall winner of the RIBI Rodney Huggins Environmental Award.

The innovative Butterfly Gardens Project encouraged primary and nursery school children in the Dales to create gardens in their schools grounds that gave butterflies a safe haven as some species are now becoming rare.

More than 1,650 children in 35 primary schools in Craven took part over a two-year period.

The judges recognised that its success lay in the fact that young children gained direct experience of saving the environment, as well as an understanding of the importance of recycling and an insight into the fascinating lifecycle of the butterfly - one of our best loved summer creatures.

Speaking on behalf of the sponsors, Nigel Pulling, chief executive of Yorkshire Agricultural Society, said, “We, at the society, could see straightaway that the Butterfly Gardens project would be a runaway success with youngsters. Its appeal lies in its simplicity - it shows young children that they can make a real difference to the richness of the natural world around them.”

Bob Hargreaves, project director, added: “Both Rotary clubs are delighted that all the hard work and creativity shown by the pupils and staff in our local primary schools and nurseries has achieved national recognition. These awards are a true testimony to their determination to do all that they can, individually and together, to protect our precious Dales landscape.”

The project was supported by the Yorkshire Agricultural Society, Skipton Town Council, Skipton in Bloom, Yorwaste and the Craven Herald.